John Carpenter’s ‘Tales For A Halloween Night’ TV Series Is Alive At Paramount
A TV series based onJohn Carpenter’sTales for a Halloween Nightcomic book series was originally in development at SYFY, but earlier this year word arrived that the adaptation was dead. But anyone who has ever watched a horror movie can tell you that what’s dead doesn’t always stay dead. Sure enough, Carpenter himself has confirmed theTales for a Halloween NightTV series is alive again, now at Paramount.
Back in March,Sandy King, who was set to produceTales for a Halloween Nightwith Carpenter, said: “SYFY wantedTales for a Halloween Nightbut it quickly became evident that they just wanted the title. And I really saw a disaster on the horizon…It’s dead. I think we have a pretty good idea what our fans want to see. It doesn’t mean something can’t be done but at its core, the people we work with have to respect horror fans and respect the genre. That’s the core of it. Not just respect the fact that horror right now makes money.”
This was a bummer, especially because Carpenter was planning to direct the pilot episode himself. Now, though, there’s some hope. Speaking withComicBook.com, Carpenter revealed that theTales for a Halloween Nightshow is still alive, and now at Paramount. When pressed for more details – such as whether or not he was still planning to direct the pilot – Carpenter said: “We’ll see. We’re just getting cranked up.”
TheTales for a Halloween Nightcomics contained multiple horror stories from various authors, and promised “a collection of tales featuring graveyards, sunken ships, creepy crawlers and ghosts to haunt your dreams at night.” Horror shows continue to flourish right now:American Horror Storyis about to launch another season, AMC hasThe Terror, and Shudder will soon release itsCreepshowseries.
TurningTales for a Halloweennight into an anthology series is a great idea. It’s also heartening to know that Carpenter and King are committed to getting this right, so much so that they were willing to let the original incarnation of the show die rather than deliver a lackluster product. Here’s hoping things work out this time, and that Carpenter makes good on his original plan to direct at least one episode.
